Note: In a career context, all numbers are restricted between 0 and 5. However, in a match context, the numbers are not restricted. For simplicity, we are changing the scale here in the report and expressing every Match Impact number as a percentage. The maximum percentage (100) is assigned to the highest impact player of the match. All other players in the match are scaled relative to him. Negative Match Impact indicates that not only did the player not contribute in the match, but he also had an adverse effect on his team’s chances.​​

With play on Day 5 (Sunday, 12th March) being abandoned without a ball being bowled, New Zealand and South Africa drew the opening Test in Dunedin.

Dean Elgar was the highest impact player of the first Test.

The left-hander scored 229 runs (140 and 89) and both his innings saw him fend off the new ball ( New Ball Impact ), absorb pressure ( Pressure Impact ) and build partnerships ( Partnership-Building Impact ). He was unsurprisingly the highest impact batsman too.

Neil Wagner was the highest impact bowler for his match haul of five wickets (3 for 88 and 2 for 57, all top-middle order). He also contributed 32 runs with the bat and finished New Zealand’s highest impact player.